Widow Sisters and Friends (Restoring Our Broken Hearts)

With You in Spirit

Summary: Yelena is visiting Natasha's grave, breaking down as she has been since she found out the news, and Fanny suddenly starts acting strangely. At first, she believes that Fanny has just gone out of her mind, but then she quickly realizes that the true reason runs so much deeper and is far more meaningful.

  Yelena stood before her sister's grave, falling apart into tears for what seemed like the millionth time.

Even though it had been several weeks since she came back from the blip and since she had found out about Natasha, it still felt like she had just found out. She had hardly been able to pull herself together. She had cried almost every moment of every day, and grief was tugging her to her knees almost constantly.

It was just so, so hard without Natasha. Her big sister. Her reason. Her favorite person in the entire world.

Yelena released a particularly violent sob as she allowed the pain to take hold of her more strongly. She just missed her so, so much.

However, to her shock, she suddenly felt a cold nose pressing to her hand. She looked down sorrowfully, realizing that it was just Fanny. It was rather odd that the dog was coming over to comfort her. Usually, Fanny was so excited to run loose and play in the woods around the graveyard that she did not come back until Yelena called her.

Yelena ran her hand over Fanny's head, scratching affectionately at her fur as she tried to contain at least a little of her tears.

"Hey, pup... I'm okay... I just miss her," Yelena admitted, her voice breaking as she stared at the grave before her.

Fanny remained there in her grasp for a moment before stepping forward and looking back at her oddly. Yelena looked at her, feeling pain gripping her as she thought of Fanny's name and the backstory behind it that was only magnified by the grave there before her.

However, she was immediately less sad and more upset when Fanny suddenly walked onto the grave.

"Fanny! Don't walk on that! No!" Yelena scolded, starting to make a move to try to get her off of the patch there on the ground. However, to her shock, Fanny just stared her right in the eyes calmly.

Yelena just froze, watching her silently and not daring to say anything since the dog was behaving so strangely. She was not afraid of her at all, but she wanted to figure out what Fanny was about to do.

After just a moment, Fanny rolled over on her back in front of Yelena, making a small noise that was not quite a whine or a bark. Yelena just stared at her, realizing that Fanny was laying on Natasha's grave and that she was quite obviously upside down.

She stared blankly at the dog, and Fanny just watched her. Yelena felt the strangest feeling overcome her as she fully realized that her Fanny never acted like this. Fanny never had stepped foot on Natasha's grave. She had somehow seemed to understand that it was forbidden territory and that she was not allowed to.

But now with the combination of Fanny's sudden position upside down and her odd placement on Natasha's grave, she had the weirdest thought.

What if somehow... some way... this was her sister in the form of Yelena's beloved dog?

So feeling quite stupid indeed but deciding that no one was around to truly judge her, Yelena wet her lips quickly before speaking up.

"Natashka?" Yelena questioned, her voice sounding rougher and raspier than she intended. Fanny just looked at her patiently and calmly, her tail wagging as she gazed up at Yelena from her position laying on her back. Her head tilted slightly as she eyed Yelena, and Yelena could almost see something in her that reminded her of her big sister.